Rotary pay-off



R. 5. DUNBAR ROTARY PAYOFF Filed Nov. 30, 1945 INVENTOR RIC z ard S. Dunbar ATI'ORN EY Patented July 22, E947 U N E ST ES PATENT OFFICE ROTARY PAY-OFF Richard Schaefer Dunbar, MassenajN. Y., as-

signor to Aluminum Company of America, Pittsburgh, Pa, a corporation of Pennsylvania Application November 30, 1945, Serial No. 631,832

7 Siaima. i

- unwound.

Another object of the invention is to provide a payoff arranged to rotatingly support a coil for unwinding and adapted for the mechanical loading of a multiplicity of coils without intervening manual manipulation and lifting of individual coils and without interrupting an unwinding op-v eration in progress.

A further object of the invention is to provide in a, rotary payofi means to support a coil for sliding movement into position for rotative unwinding in such fashion as to avoid possibility of ensnaring the wire loops and to reduce possibility of marking or damaging the wire surfaces.

A still further object of the invention is to simplify and improve generally the structure and operation of payoff devices of the character referred Some of the forms which the invention may take are shown in the accompanying drawings wherein Fig. l is a plan view; Fig. 2 is a side elevational view or the device of Fig. 1, illustrating diagrammatically the manner of loading the same with a hairpin type coil carrier; Fig, 3 is an end view of the device looking from the right side of Fig. 2; Fig. 4 is a longitudinal sectional view, on an enlarged scale, of a portion of the structure shown in elevation in Fig. 2; Fig. 5 is a view partly in section showing a constructional detail, and Fig. 6 is a fragmentary side elevational view showing a modification.

Referring more particularly to the drawing, the payoff device comprises, in general, a horizontal beam ID on which a load of coils to be unwound is adapted to be supported, a reel or rotor ll rotatably associated with the beam, and a supporting pedestal or upright it. The pedestal it has its lower end anchored in a concrete foundation in order to give stability to the structure, and it preferably is of heavy tubular construction consisting of upper and lower portions bolted together at floor level, as shown, in order to facilitate installation.

At its upper end, the pedestal is provided with a bracket plate it for the rigid attachment of a cylinder or barrel it to the pedestal (best seen in Fig. 4), the cylinder being suitably rigidly connected to the pedestal by means of cap screws extending through the plate 53 and threaded into an annular flange on the inner end or the cylin- Z der. The axis of the cylinder I4 is disposed horizontally in right angle relation to the vertical axis of the pedestal. The cylinder, in efiect, forms an integral or fixed lateral extension of the pedestal and serves as an annular raceway or support for the reel ll. Within the cylinder M, stiffener web plates l5 perpendicular to each other and extending diametrically are provided and are welded along their edges to each other and to the inner wall of the cylinder. The outer end of the cylinder M is closed by a plate l6, welded thereto, and a center pin i1 is provided thereon to receive the bracket plate l8 incorporated in the construction of the beam ill at its inner end.

The beam I0 is rigidly attached at its inner end to the outer end of the cylinder i l by means of stud bolts extending through the plate l8 and threaded into the end plate "5, as shown. The plate i8 is of larger diameter than the cylinder i4 and cooperates with the latter to confine the reel I l in position on the cylinder.

The reel H consists of a cylindrical body 20 concentric with the supporting cylinder l4 and at its ends is seated on hubs 2| of end flanges 22 and 23. These flanges are provided with stiffening plates or ribs extending from the beaded edge of the flanges to the hubs H. The inner diameter of the hubs is slightly greater than that of the cylinder I4 to provide clearance therebetween. Journalled in the hubs 2! within the reel body 20 is an annular series of circumferentially spaced rollers 25 which engage the periphery of the supporting cylinder Hi, thereby rotatably supporting the reel. Each roller is provided with a shaft 26 having threaded ends of reduced diameter which extend through the respective hubs 2| and nuts 21 threaded on the shaft retain the reel elements in assembled relation. The reel, of course, is conveniently assembled and with the beam detached from the pedestal extension l, the assembled unit is slipped endwise into position thereon. The engagement of the outer sides of the hubs 2i with the upstanding flanges at the ends of the cylinder l4, after the beam is mounted in position, serves to retain the reel against axial displacement. The flange 22 is of large diameter so as to prevent any of the turns of a wire coil during unwinding springing outwardly and rubbing against the pedestal. The flange 23 is of smaller diameter than the internal diameter of a wire coil and it is formed with a sloping periphery to facilitate passage of the wire coil from the beam thereover onto the drum 20 and serves to prevent shifting of the coil during payoff back into contact with the fixed beam.

The beam in, as before mentioned, is secured to the cylinder 14, and it preferably is of channel or U-shape form in cross section, suitably made up of upright, laterally spaced plates 28 connected along the lower edges to a bottom plate 29, as by welding, and welded along their upper edges to coil engaging tubular members or pipes 30 whose outer surface is preferably polished smooth for a suflicient eripheral distance so as to facilitate sliding of a wire coil thereover with little danger of marking or gouging the wire. Gusset plate 3| Welded to the "bottom plate 29 and attaching plate l8 serve to stiffen and brace the elongate beam Hi. In a vertical plane, the beam is centrally located with respect to the reels axis, but in a horizontal plane, the beam is so disposed that the upper surface of the pipes 30 is somewhat above the upper edge of the reel flange 23, as shown. The inner ends of the pipes 30 extend beyond the attaching plate l8 and overlie the flange 23 of the reel as shown more clearly in Fig. 5, thereby spanning the gap between the fixed and rotatable parts and allowing a wire coil to be slid ofi the end of the beam directly onto the body of the reel without danger of any of its turns becoming snared in the gap between the beam and its associated reel.

The fixed cantilever beam ID, as indicated in Fig. 2, provides for the direct loading of a load of coils from a crane carried hairpin hook or other suitable form of coil elevator and carrier by which a load consisting of a multiplicity of coils in substantially an upright position is adapted to be moved about the mill and brought to the point of use. These hairpin book carriers are well known and only the lower arm A of one is shown in the drawing with a full load of coils C carried thereby. The beam is adapted to receive and support the full load capacity of the coil carrier. It will be seen that since the coils are suspendingly supported on the hook arm A, it is only necessary after the load of coils is brought into position opposite the end of the beam of the payoff of this invention to align the arm A and beam [0 while maintaining the arm A slightly elevated with respect to the beam l0 and then to move the hook arm relatively to the beam by operation of the crane so as to pass or thread the beam through the open center of the coils, as shown in Fig. 2. The free end of the beam is provided with a smooth, rounded nose piece 3| (Fig. 2) so that no great exactitude of alignment is required for enabling free and easy threading of the beam through the coils.

With the threading operation completed, the hook is simply lowered by the crane operator until the coils are supported on the tubes 30 of the beam 10 and then the hook is moved longitudinally out of the coils and past the end of the beam. The hook and crane thus become free for whatever use is desired of them until again needed to reload the payoff.

The foremost coil on the beam is pushed therealong and onto the reel ll (Fi 2) where it is rotatively supported for unwinding, which operation may be intermittent or continuous. By thus rotatingly supporting the coil the strand being withdrawn or payed out does not twist on its own axis as ofttime is the case when withdrawing from a stationary coil, and the advantages of pulling off the wire or strand tangentially in preventing coil breaks, kinks, and snarling are fully realized. To enable regulation of the rotation of the reel H, a friction shoe 32 ii I 4 bearing against a suitable disc 33 on flange 22 and mounted on a holder 34 carried by the pedestal cylinder (Fig. 4) may be provided. By adjustment' of screw 35, the drag of the shoe on the reel may be regulated, and-it preferably is made just sufiicient to allow the reel to rotate without excessive slippage of the coil on thereel. In this way, the wire, when withdrawn at a rapid rate, is caused to be payed out smoothly and pull out of excessive lengths of wire upon decrease in rate of wire travel is avoided.

In the modified form of payoff shown in Fig. 6, the construction is the same as previously described with the exception that the reel or rotor I IA is disposed with its axis inclined downwardly with respect to the horizontal axis of the beam Illa so that the material may bear by gravity against the large flange 22a and thus overcome any tendency for the coil turns to spread excessively and perhaps move back onto the beam. Any desired angular relation of the rotor to the beam may be used to enable the material to be pulled out tangentially in any desired direction.

Since there is a plurality of coils initially deposited on the beam l0 directly from the coil carrier, each time unwinding of a coil on the associated reel I0 is completed or nearly so, as desired, it is only necessary to slide the next coil onto the reel. Thereby the onerous task of dragging or rolling a coil from a nearby supply pile and lifting 'it manually or by some specially provided device in case the coil is too heavy for manual lifting together with attendant delays and dangers to both workmen and material are entirely eliminated. In addition it is to be appreciated that when the last coil is pushed oi! the beam, a new batch or load of coils is delivered to and deposited on the payofi while unwinding of the last coil of a previous batch is in progress. Thus a continuous operating schedule is assured.

The term wire as used herein comprehends strand material such as wire, rod, and like material of circular and other cross sectional shapes, for example square or hexagonal, and ordinarily formed into coils.

While a particular form of the invention has been illustrated and described in detail, it will be understood that the invention may be variously embodied without departing from the spirit of the invention as defined in the appended claims.

What is claimed is:

1. A wire coil payoff comprising, in combination, a horizontal beam for supporting a plurality of coils thereon, means for supporting said beam at one end for simultaneous loading of said coils onto said beam from its free end, and a rotatable reel on said supporting means in proximity to the fixed end of said beam for receiving the innermost coil from the beam and rotatably supporting said coil for unwinding.

2. A wire coil payoff comprising, in combination, a horizontal beam for supporting a plurality of coils thereon, a rotatable coil support associated with said beam at one end thereof to receive a coil therefrom and rotatably support the same for tangential payoif of the wire, a common supporting member for said coil support and said beam extending axially through the former, means rotatably supporting said coil support on said member, and means rigidly connecting said beam to the end of said member.

3. In a wire coil payoff, a horizontal beam for axially receiving and supporting a plurality of coils thereon, a fixed support on which said beam is rigidly attached at one end, a rotor rotatably mounted on said support in angular relation to said beam to receive a coil from the beam and rotatably support the same for unwinding, and a flange member on the end of said rotor opposite to said beam against which the coil on said rotor bears during unwinding.

4. A wire coil payofi comprising, in combination, a cylindrical support fixed at one end, a cantilever beam secured to the other end of said support and extending horizontally therefrom for loading of a plurality of upright coils thereon from its free end, a reel cooperating with said beam to receive a coil therefrom and support the same for unwinding, said reel including a body portion concentric with said support and a coilretaining flange at its end opposite to said beam, and means rotatably supporting said reel on said support.

5. A wire coil payofi comprising, in combination, a vertical support having a horizontal ex-- tension, 2. reel rotatably mounted on said extension, and a horizontal beam secured at one end to the outer end of said extension for suspendingly supporting a plurality of coils simultaneously loaded thereon from its free end, said beam being located with its coil engaging surface substantially aligned with the top side of said reel for sliding movement of the innermost coil thereover onto said reel for unwinding.

6. A wire coil payoff comprising a fixed support, a cylinder secured to the side thereof with its axis horizontal, a coil supporting beam secured at one end to the outer end of said cylinder and free at its other end for threading of a plurality of coils thereon, a reel having a body portion concentric with said cylinder, an annular series of rollers between said body portion and said cylinder rotatably supporting the reel on said cylinder, the supported end of said beam overlying the adjacent end of said reel, for movement of the innermost coil on the beam onto said reel for unwinding, and a coil retaining flange on said reel at its end opposite to said beam.

7. A wire coil payofi comprising a fixed support, a cylinder secured to the side thereof with its axis horizontal, a reel comprising a body portion concentric with said cylinder, an annular series of rollers within said body portion in contact with the periphery of said cylinder to rotatably support said reel, end flanges having hubs on which said body portion is seated and in which said rollers are journalled at their ends, the flange at the outer end of said cylinder being of reduced diameter relative to the diameter of the other flange to permit axial movement of a coil thereover, an elongate coil supporting beam of channel form having its sides in upright position, means detachably securing said beam at one end to the outer end of said cylinder, said beam being free at its other end for axial insertion of a plurality of coils thereon from a movable coil carrier, a pair of parallel, longitudinally extending tubes secured to the said sides of the beam and defining the coil engaging surface thereof on which said coils are suspendingly supported for sliding movement thereover, the inner ends of said tubes overlying a portion of the periphery of said flange of reduced diameter for discharge of the innermost coil on the beam directly onto said body portion of the reel, for unwinding.

SCHAEFER DUNBAR.

. RICHARD 

